The Republic, (sculpture).

The Republic, (sculpture).

French, Daniel Chester, 1850-1931, sculptor.

Bacon, Henry, 1866-1924, architect.

Norcross Brothers, carver.

Jno. Williams, Inc., founder.

The Republic, (sculpture).

Dedicated May 11, 1918.

Figure: bronze, gilded; Base: Stony Creek pink granite and grey speckled granite.

Figure: approx. H. 24 ft.; Base: approx. 16 x 15 x 15 ft.

(Inscribed on front of base:) The Republic/To Commemorate the/World's Columbian Exposition/MDCCCXCIII (Inscription on back of base:) The World's Columbian Exposition/Authorized by Act of Congress/And generously participated in/by the nations of the earth/was held here in 1893 to celebrate the four hundredth anniversary of the/discovery of America. On this site stood/the administration building.

Standing female figure holding a staff in her proper left hand and a ball with a bird on it in her proper right hand. She is classically draped and wears a laurel wreath on her head.

Figure female -- Full length

Allegory -- Civic -- Republic

Outdoor Sculpture -- Illinois -- Chicago

Coadministered by Chicago Park District, Preservation Planning Division, 425 East McFetridge Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60605

Coadministered by Art Institute of Chicago, 111 South Michigan Avenue, Chicago, Illinois 60603-6110

Located Jackson Park, Hayes (63rd Street) & Richards Drives, Chicago, Illinois

The original 65 ft. high version of this sculpture stood at the Court of Honor at the World's Columbian Exposition in 1893. It was destroyed after the fair closed, but a 12 ft. plaster model survived and was used to make this version. The sculpture stands on the site of the fairs Administration Building. Funds for its construction were provided by the directors of the World's Columbian Exposition from money remaining from the proceeds of the fair and by the B. F. Ferguson Monument Fund. Architect Henry Bacon designed the pedestal for this version of The Republic. Cost fifty thousand dollars.

The Archives of the Art Institute have correspondence with Daniel Chester French concerning the sculpting, casting, and transportation of the work to Chicago. The Art Institute conservation lab has related conservation treatment proposal files. The Chicago Park District Monument and Sculpture Photographic Archives contains black and white photos of the plaster model for the sculpture, a sketch of the monument and other photographs taken since the installation. The Chicago Park District Monument and Sculpture Preservation Files contain miscellaneous correspondence, news articles, and conservation treatment reports with slide documentation.

Index of American Sculpture, University of Delaware, 1985.

Public Monument Conservation Project, 1986.

Bach, Ira J., and Mary Lackritz Gray, "A Guide to Chicago's Public Sculpture," Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1983, pg. 242-243.

Riedy, James L., "Chicago Sculpture," Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1981, pg. 28-29.

National Park Service, American Monuments and Outdoor Sculpture Database, IL5050, 1989.

Monumental News, Sept. 1914; June 1918.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, Illinois, Chicago survey, 1992.

Bach, Ira J., and Mary Lackritz Gray, "A Guide to Chicago's Public Sculpture," Chicago: University of Chicago, 1983, pg. 243.

Monumental News, Sept. 1914, pg. 382 and cover.

The information provided about this artwork was compiled as part of the Smithsonian American Art Museum's Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture database, designed to provide descriptive and location information on artworks by American artists in public and private collections worldwide.

Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture, Smithsonian American Art Museum, P.O. Box 37012, MRC 970, Washington, D.C. 20013-7012

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